From baking and dressmaking to first aid and music lessons, we've found the fun and practical domestic helper courses around Singapore that'll enrich your helper's skills.
Life in Singapore with a young family sometimes requires some pretty nifty skill sets. Especially when it comes to keeping on top of our kids’ demands and our busy adult schedules. The juggle is real, people. And since we can’t be in a zillion places at the same time, having a trusty assistant to help steer us through the parenting minefield is totally essential. Step forward: our amazing helpers!
Whether you are a stay-at-home mum, a working mother or something in between, having an extra pair of eyes at the park, hands at the soft play centre and extra legs when trying to race between kids at different schools is a godsend. But did you know many great domestic helper courses in Singapore can help your helper become even more awesome?
We’ve found some fabulous domestic helper courses that we think your helpers will love. These classes and lessons will help her embrace and enhance her personal and professional skill sets, and not just for life with your family. These courses will help her build a future beyond her role as a helper. Read on below!
17 awesome courses in Singapore for your helper
1. Uplifters
Uplifters is a non-profit organisation in Singapore with a mission to help domestic workers transform their lives with their range of empowerment and skill development courses! Its signature programmes include free money management and mental well-being courses to equip your helper with the necessary skills to lead a better life. It even has a baby care course to help expectant and new parents and their helpers prepare to care for a newborn. Additionally, the site features resources for domestic workers and a free module for domestic helpers to maintain a positive work relationship with employers.
Uplifters, sign up and attend courses online
2. Aidha
Aidha believes in “sustainable futures through financial education”. This micro-business school organises domestic helper courses in Singapore that cover important life skills for when your helper is ready to move back home. Your helper can pick up tips on developing good saving habits, preparing for future small businesses, and learning how to make sound investments. Classes are held on Sundays over three to nine months, covering everything from entrepreneurship to computer literacy to business management and finance.
Aidha (Main office), 748A North Bridge Road, Singapore 198716
Aidha@FAST Hub (Satellite Campus), #02-05, Block D, 3 Chin Cheng Avenue, Singapore 429401 Aidha@Catapult (NEW Main Campus), 1 Rochester Park, #02-01, Rochester Commons, Singapore 139212
3. Foreign Domestic Workers Association for Skills Training (FAST)
FAST has organised numerous skill courses and programs, benefiting around 25,000 MDWs yearly. These cover cooking, baking, infant care, eldercare, reflexology, nursing, computer skills, English, stress and financial management, and entrepreneurship. Working with training providers and community centres, FAST offers these courses at subsidized rates. Additionally, they conduct a two-day onboarding and integration programme to help new MDWs acclimate to life in Singapore, covering essential skills like public transport usage and road safety.
FAST, 3 Chin Cheng Avenue, Singapore 429401
4. Bayanihan Singapore
Filipino helpers who fancy learning new skills can join courses ranging from martial arts to bookkeeping at the Bayanihan Centre. Programs typically start in March and end in October. Classes include cool choices such as cosmetology and aromatherapy, too! Follow their Facebook page to stay updated about their cool webinars, which cover topics ranging from leadership skills to financial literacy and more.
Bayanihan Centre, 43 Pasir Panjang Road, Singapore 118503
5. Mujahidah Learning Centre
Since its humble beginnings in 2006, with less than 40 students and few classes, Mujahidah Learning Centre has grown significantly. Today, it has benefited over 10,000 foreign domestic workers, primarily from Indonesia, offering English, cooking, baking, sewing, and spiritual classes like Quran recitation. The centre aims to provide a platform for self-improvement, help workers effectively use their off days, support entrepreneurship back home, facilitate skill acquisition, and foster social connections in Singapore. Stay updated via their Instagram.
Mujahidah Learning Centre, Mujahidin Mosque, 590 Stirling Road, Singapore 148952
6. Archdiocesan Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (ACMI)
ACMI offers vocational and language courses in Singapore to enhance migrant workers’ skillsets holistically. These courses provide practical skills for everyday life and opportunities to pursue new interests. Your helper can try out fun courses, from baking, computers, and hairdressing to caregiving, speaking everyday English, small business enterprise classes, and even guitar lessons. The centre is popular, and enrolment happens twice yearly, so we advise booking as early as possible.
ACMI, Agape Village, 7A Toa Payoh Lorong 8, #04-01, Singapore 319264
7. Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME)
The HOME Academy was set up to provide training and support to domestic workers of all nationalities. Weekly Sunday classes offer programs in English, Mandarin, computer skills, cooking, dressmaking, and financial education. Your helper will love the HOMEly feel of this place, which makes it a great place to make some new connections for your helper, too! Plus, former students of HOME Academy are encouraged to return as aspiring tutors.
HOME, register at 495 Geylang Road, #02-01, Singapore 389453
8. International Management School (IMS)
The International Management School offers part-time courses (often run on a Sunday) in various useful subjects. Think business management, civil engineering, caregiving, and culinary design. The best part? Costs are kept low to ensure the diplomas are accessible to everyone.
International Management School, Jalan Besar Plaza, 101 Kitchener Road, #03-39, Singapore 208511
9. Mother & Child
For those of us who leave our tots in the care of our helpers, it certainly helps to know they are in capable hands. The Mother & Child First Aid for Helpers class covers infant and child care essentials such as CPR, accident prevention, first aid and emergency procedures. Not only will your helper be learning worthwhile skills, but this course will also give parents peace of mind. Read our account of what it’s like to resuscitate your own baby, and you’ll understand why.
Mother & Child, Tanglin Mall, 163 Tanglin Road, #03-11, Singapore 247933
10. First Aid Tuition
Empower your domestic helper with First Aid Tution’s monthly first aid courses to respond effectively in emergencies. Designed to equip helpers with critical life-saving skills, their comprehensive session covers common home emergencies for all age groups. Beyond crisis management, the course emphasises accident prevention, addressing common home injuries and providing practical prevention strategies.
First Aid Tuition, contact for more information, locations in Katong and Queenstown
11. Parentlink
Parentlink offers an invaluable four-hour first-aid course. The course covers emergency situations involving poisoning, fractures, bleeding, burns, and more, as well as teaching CPR and creating an emergency plan.
Parentlink, 18 Hougang Avenue 3, Singapore 530018
12. Conscious Parenting Training: Mary Poppins Training
While there might not be any spoonfuls of sugar, flying umbrellas or chimney sweeping involved, the Conscious Parenting Training: Mary Poppins Training domestic helper course looks pretty supercalifragilisticexpialidocious to us. Your helper will learn to play and interact positively with babies, toddlers and older kids. They’ll also pick up tips on implementing conscious discipline with kiddos in their care when they are less than their usual angelic selves…
Conscious Parenting Training, Mother & Child, #03-109/110 Tanglin Mall, 163 Tanglin Road, Singapore 247933
13. Chapter Zero
If your domestic helper will be assisting in looking after your little bub, we recommend sending them for The Mindful Nanny course. The lessons include both theory and practical hands-on sessions, covering topics such as respectful caregiving, child-led play, and gentle discipline. There are separate workshops for the caring of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Also, lecture notes come in bilingual form, which is very useful for those struggling to understand English. This is one way of involving your helper in respectful parenting.
Chapter Zero, contact for more information
14. Bunda Network
Established by a group of Indonesian professionals in Singapore, the support group runs classes on conversational English for Indonesian domestic workers. Looking to up your helper’s computer literacy skills? Bunda Network also has basic computer lessons that they can enrol in. Best of all, the courses offered are wallet-friendly.
Bunda Network, contact for more information
15. aquaDucks
We know how much the wee tykes love swimming. And if they’re going to be in the pool on most days, you’ll need all hands on deck to supervise them. This programme by aquaDucks teaches helpers personal water safety and supervising of children in aquatic environments as well as emergency rescue techniques. Lessons are conducted by highly qualified instructors who can also converse in Tagalog. This programme is highly recommended for helpers who are caring for little ones.
aquaDucks, several locations across Singapore
16. Dementia Singapore
If your helper is struggling to look after someone who has dementia, this social service agency provides a one-day training that covers various aspects of dementia care. Domestic helpers will be equipped with essential knowledge and skills to handle the challenges of caring for persons with dementia. The workshop is conducted in English, Malay, and Burmese, including lectures, group discussions, and even role-play.
Dementia Singapore, BS Bendemeer Centre, 20 Bendemeer Road #01-02, Singapore 339914
17. Nation Club
Nation Club, sign up and attend courses online
Love this list of courses for domestic helpers? Read this honest and open letter from one domestic worker.